REVIEW: THE GENTLEMAN OF SHALOTT by Gareth Watkins at The hope Theatre 6 – 17 February

‘subversive retelling of Tennyson’s ballad, leaving behind the sentimentality of the original’ ★★★★

I confess to having read the romantics (many years ago), but my enduring memory of THE LADY OF SHALOTT (by Alfred Tennyson) is the Pre-Raphaelite painting by John William Waterhouse (you know the one).

So, in the interests of returning an erudite review, I read the poem again. The elements of the lady being in a tower in Camelot, and weaving by occupation, do remain, along with many nods to the ballad. I would recommend re-reading it before coming to see the show as there are so many references which add a tongue in cheek quality.  In this subversive retelling, the show is set in a period of advanced climate change and instead of a woman being objectified, it is a man. It is a rather more cynical and honest, leaving behind the sentimentalised view of the original.

Beauty does remain in so many ways: the set; the hopeless desires of the protagonist and the remembrance of the wonders of nature.  My expectation of this queer retelling of the poem, that it would be camp and self-indulgent, were not well founded. It turns out that, for me at least, the overriding impression is one of the absurdities of man, a nightmare, every bit as cruel as the lady’s fate.   In this show the focus is on man’s inability to cope with or make sufficient changes to their lifestyle whilst being partially responsible for the destruction of their own habitat.

In this one-man show, written and performed by Gareth Watkins, we meet his character Martuni in the tower (more reminiscent of a submarine). He’s masturbating (unfulfilled) and taking a piss. This is how his day begins and over a series of repetitions we find that his day is monotonous. Weaving a single strand on the loom, or speaking with an imagined room service, or looking out at the synthetic river in case there is anything to see.    However, he has not lost hope. He has communication with the world outside, and he’s on a dating app, trying to find the perfect match.

If this doesn’t sound very promising, then a few things are really striking. It is a show which has a sense of humour, with laugh out loud moments, albeit with a slightly bitter taste to them. It is also very poignant, showing the gap between Martuni’s human desires and the actuality of his situation. 

Will his rose-tinted memories ever be fulfilled when in the outside world  society is collapsing, and health is deteriorating?    He appears to be looking for perfection but the people he encounters on the app (by voice over) don’t excite him: Reaper, wants to be a dog at the foot of his bed; Page, constantly warns him about the dangers outside, and Shepherd is blind and according to Martuni, he’s ugly.  All of them want him to come outside and when Martuni finally spots his ‘perfect match’, he makes a move away from his solitude and boredom. 

Much praise to Gareth Watkins and the director Pete Gomes, for their excellent pacing, drawing out the internal struggle and keeping it real.   The show also benefits from a wonderfully shabby chic set by Stephen Stephenson, so well used during the show. With so much to admire in the production, it would be unfair to ignore sound and the all-important cues which were spot on. Also, lighting which had its moments in the sun, and assisted to generate interest in a show which was so full of detail. All the creatives seeming to be working as a single body.

THE GENTLEMAN OF SHALOTT at The hope Theatre

6 – 17 February

Box Office https://www.thehopetheatre.com/productions/the-gentleman-of-shalott/

£10 PREVIEWS/£13/£16

writer

GARETH WATKINS

director

PETE GOMES

Set design

STEPHEN STEPHENSON

Sound design

CRAIG BYRNE

Lighting design

DANIEL PHIIPSON

Reviewed by Heather Jeffery, Editor of London Pub Theatres Magazine